One Shots: Understanding Beyond Words
by Elipsa
Summary: These are the one-shots that were asked for Understanding Beyond Words. AU. Major spoilers for UBW
1. Chapter 1

Welcome to the one-shots for Understanding Beyond Words! These are what you guys wanted me to write about: after the story and some during the story itself.

Since I received about ten ideas for one-shots I decided I'll give it a try. However, this will be slow posting as I'm not focusing on these one-shots, but the good thing is that they are stand alone and you don't have to worry about me leaving cliff hangers for these. :)

As a side note: These are unedited. They've been proofread... kinda sorta. Ok, they were glanced over, but that's _it_. So... beware... :)

I have a feeling that Tony or Severus will be making a lot of appearances in these one-shots, simply because that's who Harry talks to the most and also because I love the characters. However, I could totally be wrong about this... Who knows?

For each 'chapter' I'll have the prompt, when they happen and who gave me the idea at the bottom - why? So it can be a surprise what the prompt is :)

There will be different POV's in here, the lengths will vary and I am not posting them in any order whatsoever.

If you want to see any other scenes let me know. :)

I haven't seen anything that has happened after the Avengers movie - I really haven't had any time - except Iron Man 3. So I'm not going to be referencing anything that has happened since the Avengers.

Here is the order of events:

-Dursley's

-Time before Angitia

-After Angitia, before Natalia's betrayal

-Being with the Order, after Natalia's betrayal

-KIA years

-Avengers Movie

-Two years on his own

-Deciding to stay at Avengers Tower

I kinda want to say: BA for Before Angitia and AA for After Angitia, like BC and AD. LOL. Not sure why I find this amusing or why I felt the need to share, but there you go.


	2. The Talk

Life had turned dull.

Two years had passed since Harry left the Avengers, a week since he visited Tony last. He flew to different countries, looking at different wonders, though he never stayed in one place too long. He walked silently among the others, leaving his disillusionment off as he had promised Tony.

Sometimes he traveled alone, other times he traveled with Severus, Remus or Sirius, and rarely he traveled with all three of them. They understood he needed to be alone at times and then one of them would bully their way back into his presence because they thought he needed human interaction.

As if being seen wasn't interaction enough.

But he grew bored. Before he had a purpose: protect those dear to him. Now... he had nothing.

Angitia hissed softly in his ear and he smiled at her non-comment. He moved forward, fluidly maneuvering his way through the throng of people. There had been a point where he had to skip back a few steps so a child wouldn't drop her ice cream on him and he had been forced to spin on the balls of his feet so he wouldn't hit the couple behind him.

He continued on his way, his hands still in his pockets. Whispers followed after him for a moment before he got lost in the crowd, though he didn't know if they were aimed at him or not.

Harry couldn't be sure if he enjoyed being in a crowd. There were bodies to become hidden in, but they could all see him if they wished to. But then he simply became another face in a crowd, never thought of again. His eyes flashed upwards and caught the camera in his sight and frowned.

Shaking his head, Harry went behind a building.

"We are going to apparate."

Angitia flicked her tongue in her ear. "To the tall place?"

He smiled, running a finger over his scales. That had been the first time she spoke to him again in a few months. She had grown quieter, more lethargic, probably due to the lack of action. "Yes."

She tightened her hold on him and buried her head under her scales.

After a moment, Harry turned on his heel. The feeling of being squeezed on all sides came and he had to close his eyes, cease breathing and just wait for the pressure to ease off. When he appeared on Tony's rooftop, Harry opened his eyes and stared over New York.

The breeze ruffled his hair and Angitia swiftly moved so her head rested on Harry's shoulder.

They stayed there for an indefinite amount of time until the door to the roof banged open and Tony announced his presence, "Harry! Angitia! You're back!"

Harry didn't turn around to face the man, but Angitia twisted until she could face the general direction Tony came from.

 _"Hello, beautiful."_ Was Tony's response to her movement and she hissed quietly in reply.

Tony had learned Parseltongue quickly - though he was not fluent and he could only get the gist of what was being said. Unbeknownst to the billionaire, Harry had helped the process along by changing Tony's hearing a bit so the man could hear the differences in the hisses.

Harry folded his arms across his body and turned slowly to face Tony. The man's demeanor quickly changed and Tony frowned, stepping forward. "What's wrong?"

Rubbing his nose, Harry looked over Tony's shoulder as he asked, quietly, "Do you still have that room?" The third time Harry had visited after he had left, Tony had let him know that the wizard had a room if he ever wanted it.

A smile split across Tony's face and he nodded. "Of course!" He bounced on his toes, his hands pressed together in glee. "But it's early still! Let's play!"

* * *

Tony's form of playing took place one the lowest floor of his tower, beneath his shop and hidden from prying eyes: it was a huge room that was the space of roughly a football field where they could spar. Tony had started learning how to spar when Harry had flat out refused to teach him Parseltongue unless the other man learned how to defend himself without the suit.

Tony had kept his sparring lessons a secret from the others, saying that it would be a nice surprise for the team if they ever found out. That meant that his only sparring partner was Harry and so he never did get a lot of practice in except for the times when Harry and Angitia visited.

The two moved swiftly around the room, dodging blows, throwing them, ducking, spinning around and attempting to throw the other off.

As the years had gone on, Harry finally learned how to control the blue hint of movement so the fight had turned fair between the two.

Jumping to miss a leg thrown at him, Harry used his palm and pushed Tony's incoming fist to the side. He spun and landed on the balls of his feet, his hands pressed against the ground to roll in order to dodge another kick.

Back on his feet, Harry wondered when the others would find out he had no intention of leaving this time. They never knew when he came, only finding out after he had left the tower - if Tony remembered to tell them in the first place that he had arrived.

He had no desire to see anyone again. He left them all notes on how he was doing, what he had seen and sometimes left little gifts for the others. He had no idea if they read his notes, kept his gifts or even cared.

Harry ducked a blow, but a punch hit him in the stomach and had him falling to the floor. He blinked when he found Tony sitting on his chest, a grin on the other man's face. A smile tugged at the corners of Harry's lips, "Good job."

Tony huffed and crossed his arms, "If I were anyone else, I wouldn't take the victory."

"Yes, but you're Tony Stark."

"Right in one." Tony uncrossed his arms and tapped a finger on Harry's chest. "So, buddy, what's goin' on in that head of yours?"

"Are you going to move?"

"Nope." Tony popped the end of the word, "You would run away and you're more comfortable than the pads."

A snort left Harry and he watched as the older man pouted.

"What? Just because I made this room doesn't mean it's not... No, I'm not going to say that. Ok, this room is perfect and the pads are soft, but that is _not_ the point. The point being is that you need to tell me what is going on in here." He laid a finger on his friend's forehead, his eyebrows knitting together.

Harry closed his eyes for a moment before he gently pushed Tony off him. He sat and crossed his legs. Tony sprawled out on his back, hands cushioning his head as he continued to stare at Harry.

"I'm going to have to see them."

Harry watched, amused, when Tony bit the inside of his cheek before blurting out, "Gotta be more specific there."

"Phil. Clint." His words softened to a whisper. "Her."

He knew he couldn't stay away from them forever - not if he wanted to stay with Tony, and he did. He had to deal with whatever they wanted to speak about - which most likely consisted of why he left… again. He just didn't know what to expect.

He jolted when he felt arms wrapped around his shoulders. The movement slow and calculating and the hands patted his back awkwardly. Tony held his body away from Harry's, apparently unsure of how to hold himself as he hugged Harry.

Harry responded by carefully wrapping his own arms around Tony, both slightly uncomfortable with the movement.

Tony pulled back to sit beside Harry and grinned, keeping one arm thrown over the other's shoulders. "Then ignore her like always. If she attempts to speak with you, do your magic thing and spirit away to here or my lab. Just… make sure not to appear suddenly in front of me. I won't be held responsible if I shoot you. And, hey! How do you always talk me out of working on that? I swear, no one will be harmed by bullets when we work on it." He frowned, his arm falling to his side. "Probably. Ok, no promises. But, seriously, how do you talk me out of it each and every time?"

As he continued to talk, Harry laid down and stared at the ceiling.

* * *

He had been there a week. Each and every time he left his room, he always checked where everyone's positions in the house were. He didn't have to worry about Phil as the man rarely visited. The Black Widow usually stayed secreted away if she visited. Clint… Clint always moved around sporadically.

The man now stood in the kitchen. Harry bit his lip before straightening his shoulders. He looked over at Angitia who lay in front of the blazing fire. When he reached the door, she raised her head to stare at him before lying back down to doze for a nap.

With quick, sure steps, Harry strode to the kitchen. The smell of tomato and bacon made his mouth water, but before he made himself known, Harry paused and took a large gulp of air. He clenched his eyes shut, and ran his tongue over the front of his teeth before letting his breath out and entering the kitchen.

Clint's back stood facing him, allowing the younger man a chance to observe without being seen first. The man's shoulders pulled at the tight shirt, thin lines crossing over his broad back. His hair was still jelled into the short style he had kept for the past five years.

Reaching out, Harry gently knocked on the granite counter.

Moving quickly, Clint stood facing Harry in a defensive stance. Harry kept his eye-roll to himself as Clint slowly dropped his fighting posture.

"Why are you here?"

Harry blinked quickly twice, his eyes dropping to the floor and the corner of his mouth fell. He leaned against the counter, the lip digging into his side. "I have a room."

"No. Why are you here, with me? I thought you wanted nothing to do with me. Us." Clint brought his sandwich up to his mouth and took a bite, a small piece of lettuce falling unhindered to the floor.

"I do."

Clint chewed slowly.

Harry watched uncertainty dance in the man's eyes before Clint swallowed his bite.

"You sure as hell don't act like it." Clint waved his sandwich around, the words escaping his lips as a growl. "Sure you leave notes and… things, but that means nothing when you were wanted here and anytime you came you never once visited. Not once. Why do you show up after we're used to you not being here?"

Harry watched as Clint paced, keeping his face blank as he crossed his arms across his stomach.

"Why didn't you stay? Why didn't you fight for what we had? Was the friendship we had worthless that you just quit? Why are you here now after leaving for another two years?"

Clint stopped moving and crossed his arms, the sandwich crumbling in his clenched fingers and falling to the ground.

"You would have wanted everything to go back to how they were."

"And what was wrong with how things were before?"

Harry sighed, dropped his arms and sat on a stool that stood near the counter. He drew incomprehensible shapes on the granite, the stone cool to the touch and raising goosebumps on his flesh.

"It was based on a lie."

"That's your problem? She lied?"

He glared at Clint. "She tried to kill me."

"She was confused."

"She knew what she was getting into."

"Oh, and you know all of this because you jumped into her mind?"

He nodded.

"No one else but you saw it."

"The director."

"How did he see it."

"Penseive."

"A wha?"

"It shows memories."

"Right. Of course." Clint stomped over and sat, his chin resting on his palm. "You didn't even try to talk to her."

"Why?"

"She changed."

Harry snorted.

"You don't know if she changed or not."

"You don't."

"I do, too!"

"She fooled us once."

"And that's your issue. You think she'll betray us again."

"No."

Clint dropped his head onto his arms, his hands covering his head. His next words sounded muffled as he spoke, "I'm done with being angry at you.I'm done with being confused. I just… make me understand, Harry. "

Harry turned and looked out the windows encompassing the far walls. "Before I joined you guys, I never had friends. Everyone else either bullied and left me, or just simply ignored me, pretending I didn't even exist. Everyone always left. And then I met her and everything that I remembered didn't matter anymore because she was there and after a few months she still hadn't left."

He paused when he heard Clint take in a breath to say something, but then a gust of wind let Harry know that the other man refrained.

"You were there, but you always tried to get me to speak. When I didn't you grew bored and continued on, interacting with me only when she was around or Phil asked you to train with me. Phil was busy, never around for too long in the beginning. She sat with me, talked with me without expecting a reply and she stayed."

Rubbing a finger against his chest, Harry fidgeted in his seat and waited to be interrupted. He wanted to forget about the ache in his body when he thought of the past. He wanted to ignore the pain he felt when she left. He wanted to bury the memory of the intense despair he felt when he remembered the air of the knife over his head that she threw at him.

Clint kept quiet.

"When I spoke the first time to her, she didn't tell anybody that I did. She kept it a secret between us. She let me speak when I wanted and never pushed for me to speak to anyone else or to speak to her more. She just let me continue to do what I wanted." Needed.

"You and I became friends after I spoke. She accepted me before I ever uttered a word. We had an understanding, a silent bond that no one else can ever replicate. And she threw my trust, my sense of belonging into the shredder the moment she threw that knife."

Harry sighed and looked at Clint, finding the man's eyes mostly closed.

"I lied that night at dinner. She did have a connection with me, but it was never as deep or as connected as I had thought it been. She saw me as a friend of sorts; an expendable friend as everyone else.

"I depended on her so much that I doubt I would have spoken so soon to you or Mr. Phil if she hadn't been there. I saw her as my soul mate - not romantically," he added when Clint's head rose. "Soul mates don't have to be connected romantically.

"When I went KIA, I hadn't planned on staying that way, at least not when I thought about it after a few days. I figured one of you would dig - there's always a trail to follow as some things won't always add up - and once you started seeing that the director lies and would believe me about her I would come back. But neither you or Mr. Phil ever doubted that I truly died even though both of you knew that I have magic.

"I may not have made it unscathed, but I would have survived without her with you and Phil, but you just accepted my death by word of mouth and just... left me." His hand buried in his hair as he lowered his forehead to the cold stone, his words slowly becoming louder. "Even Tony who never believes a word anyone tells him just accepted that I died. I had planned on staying as KIA until she was caught - I could move better in the shadow and could find out why she left.

"Her betrayal cut me deeply, but you, Phil and Tony completely shattered me. Though I found it easier to forgive Tony as I only spent a summer with him and I was merely a curious being to figure out." Harry spat out the words, his hand clenching into his hair, the tendrils pulling out of his short ponytail.

"So no, I don't want things to go back to how things were because I'm not stupid. I'm not naive. I'm not a glutton for pain." He stood up, releasing his handful of hair. "My leaving wasn't solely because of her, though that was the biggest reason. I needed to be on my own. I needed to live for me."

Harry's words softened when he saw Clint's mouth part and his eyes widen. "I do care for you. I wouldn't have left notes or things for you if I didn't. I just… I haven't forgiven you yet."

"I threw them away." Clint's words were breathy and a little higher pitched than normal, his gaze falling to the counter.

A smile flickered across Harry's features before he turned to leave, "I didn't think you would keep them."

* * *

"Well?"

Harry simply stared at Tony who held the punching bag.

"What?"

"…"

"Aww, come on. Don't do this to me. Just because you probably spoke a lot to Clint doesn't mean you have to ignore me." When Harry simply quirked a brow at Tony, the older man huffed. "Well, fine, then. I'll just talk for the both of us."

He held a fist to his mouth, coughing before he attempted to speak with Harry's inflections, "Yes, Tony?"

"Well? How'd it go?"

"Great, actually! Clint and I are buddies again."

"Seriously? Awesome! All that tension was eating at me."

"Sorry, Tony, I'll -"

Harry's arm shot out and caught the man on the shoulder, a chuckle escaping him.

"Not even close, huh?"

The black haired man shook his head, a fond smile directed at Tony.

"At least you spoke to him and he knows why you left. He already knows why you can't forgive her, maybe he'll understand your reasons."

Shaking his head again, Harry started to move towards Angitia to leave, but a hand on his arm stopped him. When he faced Tony, the man's face held a seriousness that rarely graced the man's features.

"I should have looked. I don't know why I didn't, but I should have."

"You listened."

Tony shrugged, "Habit."

Snorting, Harry went to pull from Tony's grasp, but the man tightened his grip.

"Don't change the subject. I should have looked."

"You didn't."

"I know, but I should have."

Harry patted the hand holding him before prying the fingers off him. He hissed for Angitia and she uncurled from her position in the far corner and slowly went to him.

As she wound her way around his body, Harry looked at Tony. "You spoke to me while I was dead."

He walked out and went back to his room, his fingers running over Angitia.

Maybe that explained why he could stand around Tony and not feel that stab of betrayal. He didn't know and he didn't particularly care to think about it any longer.

It didn't matter anyway. He was going to stay for the simple reason he needed to do something besides see new things and new faces. He wanted a purpose and the Avengers gave him that. He probably wouldn't fight with them as part of the team, but he could watch over them and make sure they didn't do anything stupid.

"I think Master Tony has been broken, Mr. Potter."

Harry grinned up at the ceiling and held up four fingers.

"Very well; if sir remains frozen after four minutes I will let you know. Hopefully you can fix him as you are the one who broke him."

Harry laughed softly as he entered his room.

* * *

A/N I know this isn't exactly what you asked for, but here is a conversation that they had that has Clint understanding why Harry feels the way he does. I might have another smaller part that would reference this and have the two on better speaking terms, but it would be in another section for another prompt. I'm not sure yet, but Clint at least understands now. :)

Prompt: Talking With Clint

Time: Two years after Harry left Stark Tower

Where the idea came from: Ghostunderasheet

Here's the actual prompt: I do want Harry to open up to Clint and explain why he's hurting so badly. Or more likely, for Clint to have some sort of suspicion and corner Harry with it. Clint didn't exactly have a childhood of sunshine and daisies either, ya' know? I think he'd understand/pick up on that more easily than any of the others.

I think it would be difficult for Clint to pick up on Harry's childhood before joining SHIELD because he's too close to Harry. They did basically grow up together and he tends to forget that Harry hadn't always been with him and Natalia.


	3. Snakes Hibernate, Right?

_Denial._

Waking never changed for Harry: one moment asleep, the next awake. He never did have the luxury of waking slowly.

He stared at the wall across the room, his body still under the covers. His arms stayed firmly wrapped around his pillow, his knees curled slightly and the blankets pulled up to his chin, his fingers clutching the fabric. His posture almost as if he were circling something.

Yet he couldn't figure out why he had woken. No one had entered his room. Nothing had been moved. Tony hadn't changed something during the middle of the night- Jarvis would have woken Harry to inform him.

So what could possibly be wrong?

Then it struck him: he rarely slept on his side.

He released the fabric and tossed the covers off him. He blinked at the bed before smiling softly. Angitia hadn't slept with him in years. She either stayed up high in the rafters and beams or stayed under his bed in case she needed to protect him. She had only slept with him when he had first found her or if she grew too cold.

Reaching out, he went to draw his finger down her scales. His hand froze as the pad of his finger connected to her body.

Her body temperature…

He scrambled out of bed, his hands flailing at his sides.

What to do? He had to do something. What? What? What?

He picked her up. Her body hung limply. Her head didn't raise. She didn't hiss to calm him. She didn't move.

She didn't move.

No.

 _No._

 _"No."_

He gently placed her on the mattress. He placed the blankets over her, to keep her warm.

He needed to eat. She needed to rest. When he came back, she would be warm. She would be hungry. She would be moving.

Food. He had to find food.

Stumbling out of his room, he walked blindly to the common area so he could grab something from the kitchen. He ran into the walls a few times. He couldn't really see where he walked, his hands trembling by his sides. His mouth seemed dry and he needed something to loosen the knot in his stomach.

Sleeping. That's all. She slept. She went into a hibernation sleep.

Snakes did that, right?

That's all she was doing. She would wake.

She had to.

He opened cabinets blindly, hands reaching, grasping for anything.

He took out salt, pancake mix, hot chocolate, honey, goldfish, ramen and rosemary.

He placed them on the counter.

He opened the fridge and pulled out milk, orange juice, jelly, eggs, bacon and lettuce.

He set them next to the other ingredients.

Sleeping, that's all.

He grabbed a large bowl.

He dropped it onto the granite surface.

He dumped a little of everything into it.

He found a spoon.

He mixed everything together.

He had to eat.

"Harry?"

No. No, no, no.

The spoon clattered to the floor, soon followed by Harry. His knees buckled and his legs gave out. He couldn't see, his vision too blurry. His fingers dug into his scalp.

"No. No, no, no."

"What's wrong?"

"No."

"Harry?"

" _No_!"

He pushed the hands away from him and surged to his feet, swaying at the sudden movement.

"She can't be," he muttered. "She can't. She can't. She wouldn't leave me."

"What's going on?"

"She can't be." His feet and brain finally reacted and he raced back to his room.

"Harry!"

She couldn't be. She couldn't.

He fought with the doorknob, his hands slipping. The door banged against the wall when he gave up and slammed his shoulder into it, breaking the wood. He stumbled before he caught himself. He yanked the covers off the bed, throwing it to the corner of the room.

She hadn't moved.

She wouldn't move.

No.

Harry fell to his knees.

 _"Get up,"_ he whispered. _"Angitia, wake up. Wake up. Please. Please."_

She didn't.

Tears spilled down his cheeks and his head fell to the mattress. He gripped the sheet, his fingers inches from her unresponsive body.

She could still wake up.

 _"Wake up."_

She wouldn't.

 _"Please."_

He never noticed the others behind him.

* * *

 _Anger_

The warmth seeping through the mug evaporated long ago. Instead, the coffee turned cold and stale, the light brown liquid swishing towards the ring of the ceramic cup. He moved the mug around in his hands, his eyes fixated on the swirling concoction.

Time meant nothing. The numbers on the microwave blurred together so Harry couldn't know how long he had sat. That didn't matter.

His fingers gripped the cup until his knuckles turned white.

Nothing could be the same.

He should have known Angitia hadn't been feeling well. He should have known why she started to become lethargic, why she had slept more.

But he had assumed everything was fine.

He threw the cup, the glass shattering against the wall and the coffee staining the floor and the front of his shirt.

If he hadn't been distracted, he would have noticed.

If he hadn't been worried about himself, he would have seen the signs.

If he hadn't been constantly trying to find a purpose, he would have known.

"Harry!"

He jumped from his seat, glaring at the man daring to interrupt him. Tony stood at the doorway, his eyes wide and his chest heaving as he must have run to Harry.

Damn Jarvis.

"Hey," Tony spoke softly, slowly, eyes never leaving Harry's, "you've been ignoring me these last few days. Not cool, Harry. You should make it up to me. How about a sparring match? Fun for both of us, right? I know that I'll whip your ass again and I need my daily fight - which you've been slacking off and it's high -"

The man's mouth continued to open and close, but no words actually came forth. Tony's lips pulled down once he realized he couldn't speak.

Harry raised a shaking hand and pointed out of the room.

His throat felt tied off and he could hardly breath, his vision slowly blackening.

His stomach clenched his intestines together, making it difficult to stand.

His teeth fused together that his jaw ached, words impossible to form.

Energy flew around him, the microwave screamed for attention, the lights surged over and over again and Jarvis was attempting to speak but his words were mangled.

She was gone.

He buried his hands in his hair, tugging at the strands over and over again.

Why? What had caused her to leave? Why couldn't she stay?

A shot glass slammed into the fridge, the high shatter making a grin spread across his cheeks. The howling microwave had his eyes shining.

Cabinets slammed open and closed, plates, silverware and anything else hiding in them shot out, running into whatever stood in front of it, the missiles missing the two men.

He tugged at his strands, any emotion playing on his face washed away until he watched without any sort of tells of how he felt. His hands fell to his sides, his hair being thrown about by the unnatural wind.

"What's going on?"

That voice.

"Jarvis could only say the kitchen."

He knew those voices.

"All the lights are going off and -"

He didn't want them anywhere near him.

Tony's erratic breathing no longer came from over exerting himself. The man's eyes had widened as he stared out the kitchen door, frantically shaking his head at the two people who entered.

"Oh." She wrapped her arms around her stomach and cocked her hip while she stared at the kitchen. "You'll need to fix the room, Stark."

Clint grabbed her arm and began to back away, "We found out why the lights were going crazy and why Jarvis isn't responding. Everything will go back to -"

She sighed and pried his hand off. "We're all sorry she died, Harry."

Clint shook his head.

When the petite woman took a step forward, Harry's attention focused on her solely, the other two fading slowly away. His mouth parted and a shaky breath sent cool air over his tongue, down his throat and into his lungs. He matched her step with his own, his hands clenched tightly.

"She was getting old. It was her time."

"At least you had time with her. Maybe now you'll understand what it's like to -" the words cut off on a strangled gasp when Harry whirled around to face Clint.

"What?"

Clint had a hand over his mouth as he shook his head. The man took a step back, his eyes pleading at Harry.

For what?

Forgiveness?

Understanding?

That the man didn't mean what he said?

That he spoke without thinking like he always did?

That he hadn't meant to speak the words aloud?

Harry waited for the soothing hiss to come and tell him to calm down.

It never did.

"What. Did you. Say?"

It never would again.

A burst of accidental magic escaped him and caused all the lights to burst, sending them into darkness for a second before the emergency lights flashed on, coating them all in red.

"I'll understand now? You know what it's like to wake up with her next to you, completely still? To hold her in your hands as you would a floppy toy?" Clint was thrown into the air, slamming against the wall and slid down to the coffee stained floor. "To know that you could have done something to help, but never noticed?"

Everything went still.

His shoulders slumped.

Then he stared at Clint, his lips pulled down into a frown. Coffee stained the man's pants and his eyes were slightly glazed over due to pain.

Without another word, Harry walked out of the room.

* * *

 _Bargaining_

 ** _*Remus*_**

"Bring her back."

"I can't."

"You have a time-turner. Bring her back."

"I don't have one. I can't."

"Then get one."

"I can't."

"Stop saying you can't! Where are they? Tell me where I can find one!"

"I can't."

"Stop it!"

"Harry, you know that -"

"Stop. Stop it. I want her back. I'll give you anything if you just get me that time-turner! Please. I can't… I can't…"

"You can. She wouldn't want you to -."

"You don't know that! She wouldn't want to leave me."

"Harry."

"Please… I've never asked you for anything but this."

"I can't. I'm s-"

"No!

* * *

 _Bargaining_

 ** _*Severus*_**

"I'll never ask you to travel with Sirius again."

"You've never asked me to travel with the mutt to begin with. However, there's no potion that -"

"There has to be!"

"There isn't."

"There has to be! Something that will bring her back. Something that will send me back to save her."

"Potter, there is -"

"Why won't you help me? What do you want? I'll leave you alone. I won't bother you again. I won't darken your door again. Just. Bring. Her. Back!"

"I'll be back in a few days. Stop and think, Potter."

"I am! I want her back!"

"Think."

* * *

 _Bargaining_

 ** _*Sirius*_**

"I'll prank Severus. I'll go back to the Wizarding world. I'll play nice with whoever you want me to."

"…"

"What do you want? I know you have knowledge from your family that could help me. Why won't you help me?"

"…"

"Why won't you answer me? Damnit! What do you _want_?"

"…"

"Why are you just staring at me. I'm not crazy!"

"…"

"Why won't anybody help?"

"…"

"Why are you crying? Damnit all!"

* * *

 _Bargaining_

 ** _*Tony*_**

"You brought an AI to life."

"While I'm brilliant to create Jarvis, I can't bring Angitia back to life."

"You can! You have the reactor. You brought yourself back to life!"

"I wasn't dead, Harry."

"You were close."

"But I didn't stop breathing. It's been ten days."

"So? All we have to do is restart her heart, right? That's all we have to do."

"She would be brain dead, Harry. She wouldn't understand you. She wouldn't be able to move. She wouldn't be able to eat."

"Stop."

"She wouldn't be able to speak to you. She wouldn't recognize you."

"Stop it!"

"She wouldn't be who you remember."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Do you want an image, Harry? Do you want a shadow of who you remember? Do you want her to suffer more than she did?"

"No! I just… I want her. I want her back."

"I know."

"If I started talking to Natalia again, if I forgave her, would Angitia come back? I'd do that. I'd do anything to bring her back. Why doesn't that count for anything? What do I have to do? Tell me. Please."

"Harry…"

"I want her back."

"..."

" _I want her back_."

* * *

 _Depression_

He didn't see anything clearly. He saw shapes moving around, sometimes they ignored him, sometimes they stopped in front of him before moving on, other times they sat beside him.

He couldn't hear anything except for muffled noises. Words - if they were words - never registered and he never knew what anyone said.

He didn't move. He didn't have to.

If he closed his eyes, he could pretend she was still there with him. He could feel her weight around him, hear her hiss in his ear and feel her cool scales against his fingers.

But then he opened his eyes and he couldn't tell where he was.

When it was.

What happened around him didn't matter.

None of it mattered.

A hand on his shoulder pulled him to his feet. Someone lead him… somewhere.

It didn't matter where.

A soft hiss sounded and everything became crystal clear.

Tony, Remus, Sirius, Severus and... _Phil_ stood in the training area Harry and Tony used. In between Sirius and Tony was a cage, an annoyed hiss coming from within.

" _Release me! Release me!"_

Harry stumbled back, his legs failing him and he crumpled to the floor. He couldn't look away from the cage where he saw a dark, round head and a tongue lashing out.

" _Why am I in here?"_

Why? Why?

A sob escaped Harry, his hands coming to cover his eyes.

They didn't…

He couldn't…

They brought him another snake?

No… he couldn't replace her.

Not ever.

Tears slipped through his fingers and his shoulders shook as sob after sob escaped from him. He curled his knees to his chest and buried his face in his legs.

Arms wrapped around him and he flinched back.

"Harry."

The word speared through him and without another thought, he relaxed and continued to cry into the man's shirt. Fingers ran through his hair and words he no longer understood washed over him.

He never noticed when the others left, feeling safe and secure in Phil's arms.

* * *

 _Acceptance_

Harry sat cross-legged and stared at the snake coiled in front of him.

Its main body was white with large, black bands encircling its body. Its head was black and its black eyes locked on Harry.

He had yet to speak to it.

" _If you move, I'll bite."_

Harry didn't move.

" _Stay still."_

Harry didn't move.

" _I move, you stay still."_

Harry still didn't move.

Slowly uncoiling itself from it's tight ball, it began to slither forward, tongue flickering out. " _Too big. Not food. Staying still. Not threat. What is it? Moves. Not food. Still. No hiding place. What is it? Not normal."_

Without any prompting, his lips curled into a smile as the creature sidled closer.

A Blue Krait, if he recalled correctly. Extremely poisonous.

" _Climbing thing?"_

" _No. I'm not a climbing thing."_ He hadn't meant to respond.

The snake froze.

" _You speak."_

" _I do."_

" _You're not food."_

" _No."_

" _You're not a threat?"_

" _No."_

"…" The Krait didn't move, body poised as if to strike.

" _Hungry?"_

" _Yes. Food. Now. Where?"_

Harry pulled a pen from his pocket and placed it to the side, waving his hand once it lay on the floor. A rat took the place of the pen. The whiskers trembled and the nose twitched. By the time it noticed the snake, it was too late.

Watching in fascination as the snake ate it's meal, Harry wondered what to do.

Minutes passed slowly as the snake finished swallowing the rat. He lowered his head and continued to stare at Harry. " _You feed me?"_

" _I did."_

" _I'll keep you."_

Harry choked, his hand coming to rub the pain in his chest that he couldn't reach to relieve.

" _Why hurt?"_

Harry looked up and was surprised to find the snake's head inches from his hand and chest.

" _Here. Pain. Why? I hurt the pain to make it go away?"_

" _No. I'll be fine."_

" _But… pain."_

Harry reached out and stroked the snake's head.

" _I'll be fine."_

* * *

Prompt: Angitia's Death

Time: After deciding to stay at Avenger's Tower - three months later, roughly, and ends about 4-6 months after that.

Who: Me because apparently I have to torture myself…

This was my thought process: Man, Angitia's old. Wait a second... snakes die, too. Crap, how old is she? CRAP, over 20. _CRAP_ that means she has to die soon. Mommy tried to reason that she's his familiar and that familiars are said to live as long as the wizard - or according to other peeps - but then I countered: familiars were never mentioned in the HP books that I remember (and I couldn't find it on the wikia when I looked) and, if familiars are a part of the magical world anyway, he didn't know the magic to perform that bond with Angitia. Anyway... yeah... there you go.

So this is all I have written so far and now there will be long breaks between each new scene. Like I said, if you have any more ideas for me to write, let me know. :)


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